Dr. Pennell on Remaining Challenges in NSCLC

Nathan A. Pennell, MD, PhD, an associate professor in the Department of Medicine and director of the Lung Cancer Medical Oncology Program at the Taussig Cancer Institute of Cleveland Clinic, discusses remaining challenges in non–small cell lung cancer (NSCLC).

Tremendous progress has been made in the NSCLC space over the past decade, says Pennell. There have been several new discoveries in terms of targeted therapies for patients with KRAS and HER2 mutations. 

Although immunotherapy has been practice changing, it is effective in a minority of patients with metastatic disease. Therefore, research is needed to enhance the efficacy ​of this modality.

To that end, research is focused on ​developing novel immunotherapy combinations​, as well as personalizing treatment through the use of T cells, ​says Pennell.

In addition to evaluating novel agents, the field should focus on ​improving access to currently available therapies as recent studies have shown that less than half of patients with targetable genetic alterations are identified and treated appropriately, Pennell concludes.